Power Ranking All 32 NFL GMs' 2011 Performance

Football is the ultimate team sport—you not only have to have 22 guys on each side of the ball, but you need to have an entire 53-man roster that is able to play as a team and compete successfully.

Out of all the major sports in the world, I think that we can all agree that the NFL general managers are the most critical—it's simply so difficult to build a winning football team, it's as easy as it may be in EA Sports' Madden video games.

With that being said, here is a power rankings of all the general managers in the NFL. Keep in mind that these are a rankings of how each general manager has operated with the team that they're currently with, not their past tenures.

29. Gene Smith, Jacksonville Jaguars

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It's kind of hard to put a lot of blame of Gene Smith, as it seems like the Jacksonville Jaguars ownership is very unwilling to spend any money.

Despite not spending money, Smith has done a decent job at bringing in talent with his recent signing of Paul Posluszny, as well as drafting Blaine Gabbert, who is projected by many to be the best quarterback out of the 2011 draft class.

28. Brian Xanders, Denver Broncos

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I am not a fan of Brian Xanders whatsoever.

I actually did like the hiring of Josh McDaniels to be the team's head coach, but I feel like Xanders let McDaniels have too much control of the football team. If Xanders just simply made McDaniels coach, then he could still be the head coach in Denver.

The biggest knock that I have on Xander is drafting Tim Tebow—do I need to say anything else?

24. Rod Graves, Arizona Cardinals

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Rod Graves has been with the Arizona Cardinals ever sine 1997, and it's been a shaky time period from now until then.

Graves has had only one great moment of his career as he brought in Kurt Warner to be the quarterback of this team. Warner turned the Cardinals into contenders and a playoff team and even went to the Super Bowl in 2008.

21. Billy Devaney, St. Louis Rams

In just three seasons with the St. Louis Rams, Billy Devaney has certainly pointed the Rams in the right direction.

Devaney is the man who drafted Sam Bradford, the obvious quarterback of the future and a potential All-Pro passer.

In my opinion, Devaney's best move was hiring Josh McDaniels to be the team's offensive coordinator. McDaniels has tremendous success in New England as he was the offensive coordinator for the record-breaking 2007 offense.

18. Rick Spielman, Minnesota Vikings

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Overall, I think that it's safe to say that Rick Spielman is a solid general manager and has done a nice job with the Minnesota Vikings.

Spielman has been effective in the draft as he's brought in Adrian Peterson, Percy Harvin, Chad Greenway, Ray Edwards and Sidney Rice while potentially drafting the quarterback of the future in Christian Ponder this past season.

The only knock that I have against Spielman is that he traded for Donovan McNabb—there is no reason why McNabb should be starting in the NFL today. I'm sorry.

16. Howie Roseman, Philadelphia Eagles

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For being the Philadelphia Eagles general manger for just one full season, Howie Roseman has made it clear that he's going to be aggressive and that he wants to build an elite football team that will win multiple Super Bowls.

15. Thomas Dimitroff, Atlanta Falcons

Ever since taking over as the Atlanta Falcons general manager in 2008, Thomas Dimitroff has been very aggressive in acquiring talented players that he feels will make his team a Super Bowl contender.

First off, we all need to applaud Dimitroff for drafting Matt Ryan, who's the obvious quarterback of the future and has the potential to be an elite quarterback. As he drafted Ryan, Dimitroff has done an excellent job at surrounding him with quality talent such as drafting Julio Jones and signing Michael Turner.

I am a firm believer in what the Falcons are doing, and I believe they'll win a Super Bowl in the upcoming seasons.

14. Tom Heckert, Cleveland Browns

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Tom Heckert may only have a full season under his belt as the Cleveland Browns general manger, but during that one season, I am completely impressed with his transactions.

Heckert has set the Browns up to be potential winners for years to come by drafting Colt McCoy and Joe Haden while having a promising draft class this past season with the likes of Phil Taylor, Greg Little and Jabaal Sheard.

12. Scott Pioli, Kansas City Chiefs

Scott Pioli had an amazing amount of success with Bill Belichick in New England, and he's brought it to Kansas City, as he took over as the Chiefs general manager in 2009.

During these two-short seasons, Pioli has actually made a positive mark on this franchise.

For starters, Pioli turned this team into a playoff team a year ago as he brought in his two former coordinators in New England, Charlie Weis and Romeo Crennell, while drafting players like Eric Berry and Dexter McCluster as well as trading for quarterback Matt Cassel.

11. Bill Belichick, New England Patriots

You may be scratching your head because you probably figured that Bill Belichick would be much higher—Well, you're wrong.

Belichick may have won three Super Bowls from 2001-2004, but let me tell you something, a lot of those players on those teams were drafted by Bill Parcells in the mid-to-late 1990s.

Belichick may be a great coach, arguably the league's best, but he simply hasn't had as much success as a general manger.

Over the years, the Patriots have been an average drafting team. Granted, the Patriots usually have a ton of draft picks, but Belichick has had way too many swing and misses such as Laurence Maroney, Darius Butler, Chad Jackson, Brandon Tate, Brandon Meriweather and Shawn Crable, just to name a few.

When it comes to free agency, all I can say is Adalius Thomas—what a bust!

10. A.J. Smith, San Diego Chargers

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A.J. Smith may be one of the most underrated general mangers in football due to his team's inability to have success in the playoffs—I'm a firm believer that it's the coaches fault, not the general manager's fault in this situation.

Smith has given head coach Norv Turner all the tools to succeed by drafting Philip Rivers and Antonio Gates while drafting several other productive players.

The only negative move that I can think of Smith making is letting Michael Turner leave San Diego when it was clear that LaDainian Tomlinson was at the decline of his stellar career.

7. Mark Dominik, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

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In such a short period of time, Mark Dominik has made his mark on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after taking over for Bruce Allen back in early 2009.

Dominik may not be really active in free agency, but he has built his Bucs' team with young talent that has been producing to date. He has brought in a franchise quarterback in Josh Freeman, while drafting Gerald McCoy, Mike Williams and Adrian Clayborn—all players should be All-Pros in the years to come.

One of the most impressive moves that Dominik has made as general manager of Tampa Bay is signing LaGerrette Blount, an undrafted running back out of Oregon, who happened to be the only rookie to run for 1,000 yards a year ago.

Let's put it this way: Mark Dominik does a great job at evaluating young talent.

4. Kevin Colbert, Pittsburgh Steelers

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Kevin Colbert has done a tremendous job at keeping one of the league's most storied franchises competitive in the league's toughest time to do so, the era of free agency.

Colbert and his drafting team have done a solid job in that department, as he's the one who drafted Ben Roethlisberger, Rashard Mendenhall, Mike Wallace, Lawrence Timmons, LaMarr Woodley and Troy Polamalu—all of those players listed are key ingredients to Pittsburgh's recipe for success.

1. Ted Thomspon, Green Bay Packers

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Ted Thompson isn't the best general manager in the league simply because the Green Bay Packers are reigning Super Bowl champions—but it's certainly a part of it.

Just take a look at how well the Packers have drafted over the years and look at how their team is practically "home-grown." Players like Aaron Rodgers, Clay Matthews, Jordy Nelson, Matt Flynn, James Jones and Jermichael Finley have all been drafted in the past three years, and they're all key parts of Green Bay's roster.

It's amazing how Green Bay is rarely active in free agency, but it's because they draft so well.